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How Should Medical Expenses Be Managed with Regard to Child Support?
Illinois courts believe that children have a right to receive financial support from both of their parents- even if those parents are unmarried or divorced. Child support payments can help parents share child-related costs such as tuition, childcare, extracurricular fees, basic necessities, and medical care. While the costs of feeding and clothing your child will likely stay relatively stable throughout his or her childhood, medical expenses can quickly add up to excessive amounts – especially if your child requires ongoing or specialized medical care. Read on to learn about how medical costs are handled under Illinois child support laws.
Special Needs and Extraordinary Medical Costs
Typically, when parents receive a child support order from the court, the order will dictate how routine medical care such as yearly physicals, dental cleanings, and doctor’s visits for minor medical issues are handled. “Extraordinary” medical expenses include out-of-pocket or uninsured medical costs like co-pays, deductibles, or costs associated with major medical interventions like surgery. These costs may not be covered by the child support order you originally received from the court.
How to Establish Paternity in Illinois
When a woman gives birth to a child, she automatically becomes the child’s legal mother. Similarly, when a married woman gives birth, her husband is presumed to be the child’s father. The father will not need to take any additional steps to become the legal parent of his or her child. However, the same is not true for unmarried fathers. An unmarried father must formally establish paternity in order to be the official parent of his child. There are several ways that parents can establish paternity in Illinois.
Voluntary Acknowledgment of Paternity
The easiest and most straightforward way to establish paternity in Illinois is for both parents to sign a Voluntary Acknowledgement of Paternity (VAP). A VAP form is typically available at the hospital after the baby is born. You can also obtain a VAP through the county clerk's office, local registrar of vital records, local Department of Human Services office, or child support services office. A VAP must be signed by both parents, so this option may not work in some situations. If your child’s father does not acknowledge his parentage, he will likely refuse to sign a VAP. In this case, you will need to pursue other avenues for establishing paternity.
Can I Get My Marriage Annulled in Illinois?
Although we generally think of divorce as the main way to end a marriage, there is technically another means of “undoing” a marriage in Illinois. Annulment is a legal process through which an individual’s invalid marriage is canceled. Unlike a divorce, an annulment makes it as if a person was never married. In Illinois, annulment is referred to as a Declaration of Invalidity. Not just anyone is eligible for a Declaration of Invalidity. You must meet certain criteria in order to have your marriage annulled in Illinois.
Why Do People Get Their Marriages Annulled?
There are a wide variety of reasons that a person may wish to get their marriage annulled. A person may decide to get married on a whim and then later realize that getting married was a mistake. Sometimes, spouses seek an annulment because they learn information about their partner which makes their marriage unreasonable or legally unenforceable. Other times, a person seeks an annulment because they could not legally consent to the marriage in the first place. Many people also seek annulments for religious reasons. However, it is important to note that an annulment through a church or other religious institution is not the same as a legal annulment through the courts.
Why You Should Consider Signing a Prenuptial Agreement Before Your Illinois Marriage
Prenuptial agreements, also called premarital agreements or “prenups,” are some of the most misunderstood legal documents in all of family law. The media often presents prenuptial agreements in a negative light. Television shows and movies can also add to the confusion and misinformation surrounding prenuptial agreements. The truth is that a prenuptial agreement can benefit both members of a marriage in a wide variety of ways.
Prenups Protect the Financial Interests of Both Spouses
The main purpose of a prenuptial agreement is to determine in advance how property and debt would be divided if the couple gets a divorce. Without a prenuptial agreement, assets are divided according to equitable distribution rules in Illinois. It is very possible that one or both spouses will not end up with the property that they wanted when the court makes property division decisions on behalf of the spouses.
Factors That Can Complicate Property Division During Divorce
When two people marry, many of their possessions change from “yours” and “mine” into “ours.” Couples may share a home, vehicles, property, bank accounts, and more. When a married couple gets divorced, deciding which spouse should retain which assets can be quite difficult. There are many factors that can complicate the already complex process of property division. If you are planning to divorce and need help with asset division, contact an experienced family law attorney.
Complex Assets
Illinois couples have the option to make their own decisions regarding the division of the marital estate. However, couples who disagree about asset division may require court intervention. If a couple owns complex or high-value assets, it is likely that the process of property division will be much more involved. Assets which can complicate the property division process include but are not limited to:
Avoid Common Financial Mistakes During Your Illinois Divorce
Understandably, divorce can be a very emotional process. Many people getting divorced struggle to make good financial decisions and not let their emotions dictate their behavior. Some of the most common divorce mistakes stem from short-sightedness and haste regarding finances. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to avoid adding superfluous expense to your divorce. Read on to learn about some of the ways that divorcing individuals inadvertently increase the cost of their divorce and how you can avoid these financial pitfalls.
Mediation is an Affordable Alternative to Court Intervention
Cooperating and negotiating with a soon-to-be-ex-spouse can be one of the hardest parts of the divorce process. However, working with your spouse to come to an agreement on divorce issues is much less expensive than courtroom litigation. If you find it difficult to talk to your spouse about property and debt division, child custody, spousal support, or other divorce-related concerns, mediation may be a useful option. During mediation, a specially-qualified mediator acts as a neutral third-party during negotiations. The mediator helps the divorcing couple reach agreements about divorce issues so that the couple does not need to take the matters to court.
When Can a Stepparent Adopt a Stepchild?
A child’s well-being should be the top priority for parents going through a divorce. They should want their child to have everything they need throughout the stages of their life. However, often one parent can be substandard in their compliance with the parenting plan agreed upon with their former partner.
After a while of trying to get a co-parent to show up for visitations, send support payments, or just call to talk to a child, they may give up and choose to have a new partner - the child’s stepparent - adopt the little one.
Stepparents adopting their stepchild is not uncommon especially when a biological parent:
- Is abusive
- Is an alcoholic or a drug addict
- Does not show up to scheduled visitations
- Does not financially support a child
- Is convicted of a crime that will see them in prison for a long period of time
Can Unmarried Couples Settle Child Issues through Mediation?
Most of the courts in Illinois require a couple to go through mediation in cases involving allocation of parental responsibilities, visitation, and relocation before going through the court system. Child support will still be determined by the family court judge, however, all other issues can be settled in mediation.
This right is also given to unmarried parents, but there is an extra step that the couple must go through before heading to mediation.
When a couple has a child without being married, paternity cannot be assumed. It must be proven either through a court-ordered paternity test or a Voluntary Acknowledgement of Paternity (VAP) form that can be filled out and filed at the time of a child’s birth.
If a father claims the child and all the proper paperwork is filed, the couple can go through a mediator to determine the allocation of parental responsibilities including:
Moving with a Child After an Illinois Divorce
Illinois law went through a change in 2016 in regards to parents relocating with their child after going through a divorce. Prior to the law change, the parent with physical custody of the child was allowed to move within the state whenever they wished.
According to the new law, a parent must get permission from the court if their relocation is over 25 miles from the current address. In some cases, the 25 miles could take the parent and child over Illinois state limits.
What Is the Process to Petition for Relocation?
The Illinois court system likes to make sure that a child is able to see both parents after a divorce takes place. If one parent moves out of state, the other may not get as much of a chance to bond with their child and a parenting plan can become difficult to maintain.
A lot of relocation cases can be handled civilly with both parents agreeing to the relocation and signing the necessary paperwork to avoid court. However, if the non-custodial parent feels like their time with their children are in jeopardy, they can refuse to sign the paperwork. This would lead the primary parent to file a petition for relocation to family court.
When Should an Order of Protection be Filed During a Divorce?
When the process of a divorce is civil, there is no need for the court to order a partner or parent to stay away from the household. However, when there is domestic violence present in the relationship(s), the victim and/or parent of the victim can petition family court for an order of protection until the divorce process is concluded - or sometimes even further.
Understanding Orders of Protection
Domestic violence is a serious reason why some partners choose to split. However, if the abuser is unhappy about their partner choosing to leave, the abuse can sometimes escalate. If this happens, the victim is encouraged to file for an order of protection which will eliminate contact between victim and abuser during their divorce. This includes:
- Phone calls
- Emails
- Text messages
- Physical proximity to each other
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